Special to the Reading Eagle: Kevin Hoffman | Joseph Hirt, 90, talks to Boyertown High School students in April about his story of being imprisoned at Auschwitz and his escape during the Holocaust. His story has been called into question, including by members of his family.

A hoax shows need for understanding the true horrors of Holocaust

Sitting at a conference table inside the Jewish Cultural Center in Wyomissing Friday afternoon, Amanda Hornberger and William Franklin spoke about Joseph Hirt without anger or malice.

Hornberger, coordinator of Albright College's Lakin Holocaust Library and Resource Center, and Franklin, president of the Jewish Federation of Reading, instead shared words of hope, searching for the positive side of Hirt's fabricated story of being a prisoner at the infamous Auschwitz death camp."We can't change what he did, we can't change what happened in the Holocaust," Franklin said. "But, hopefully, we can learn from it and make sure it doesn't happen again, either of them."Hirt, who lives near Adamstown, has been sharing his tale of escaping from Auschwitz for the past decade at speaking engagements, mostly at schools, across the state and beyond. This week, a history teacher from New York, Andrew Reid, unveiled research that showed Hirt to be a fraud. Hirt's nephew also said the account isn't true.Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Hirt has continued to claim his story is true.Hornberger and Franklin both expressed sadness about Hirt's actions, and said they hope fake accounts like Hirt's don't take away from the important lessons of the Holocaust."I imagine our Holocaust survivors would be concerned if the students he spoke to disregarded what they learned," Franklin said.After all, he said, much of what Hirt shared actually did happen during World War II - just not to him."On the one hand, he was doing it, hopefully, with good intentions - to educate people," Franklin said. "At the same time, lies and untrue statements should never be accepted."Hornberger said Hirt's case is an example of why Holocaust education is so important, and provides a lesson that searching for the truth is always important."I think, hopefully, it will teach students they need to be critical thinkers," she said. "Don't take everything you learn to be 100 percent true."Hornberger said that if the people of Germany looked at the Nazis' claims with a critical eye, more may have stood up in resistance.Despite the fraudulent nature of his story, Hornberger said, she hopes it doesn't turn off those who heard Hirt speak."One bad apple, hopefully, won't ruin it for everyone," she said. "And, hopefully, the students who heard him still learned something, even if his story wasn't 100 percent accurate. They may never get a chance to meet another Holocaust survivor.""There are genocides continuing to happen today," Franklin added. "We need this kind of education so the world doesn't sit by as it did 80 years ago."Both Hornberger and Franklin also said the revelations about Hirt reaffirm the importance of what the Jewish Cultural Center and Lakin Holocaust Resource Center do."I'm hoping that if anything comes out of it, it's Holocaust education," she said. "The Lakin library is here as a resource. We shouldn't focus on his story, but use this as an opportunity to share these resources we have."Contact David Mekeel: 610-371-5014 or dmekeel@readingeagle.com.

David Mekeel | Reporter

Reporter Dave Mekeel covers education, the Reading School District and the Fleetwood area for the Reading Eagle.